Five-time Grammy nominee David Adeleke, popularly known as Davido, has responded to his loss in the Best African Music Performance category at the 68th Grammy Awards, held on Sunday night at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, United States.
The Afrobeats superstar shared messages of faith, gratitude, and resilience following the ceremony, posting photos with his wife, Chioma, on Instagram alongside the caption, “Oluwa Dey my side,” complemented with prayer and music emojis.
Hours later, Davido reflected more deeply on the outcome in a longer Instagram post, sharing photos from the event. “I said baby listen we lost again let’s not go! She said ‘Be humble in victory and gracious in defeat’ we outside,” he wrote, highlighting his determination to remain positive despite the setback.
Chioma also expressed her support on social media, praising the singer: “You already know that you’re the perfect one, @davido,” she wrote, sharing moments from the awards night.
Davido was nominated for the Best African Music Performance category for his song With You, featuring Omah Lay, from his fifth studio album 5IVE.
The award was won by South African singer Tyla for her track Push 2 Start, marking her second Grammy win following her 2024 victory with Water. Other nominees included Burna Boy (Love), Ayra Starr and Wizkid (Gimme Dat), and Eddy Kenzo & Mehran Matin (Hope & Love).
In a candid interview with OkayAfrica, Davido revealed that With You almost did not make the final tracklist of 5IVE. “Man, it’s so crazy because that song almost didn’t make the album. With You was not in anybody’s top five. And now look at it go. Every time I was performing it, my heart would just start beating like, what if I didn’t put this song?” he said.
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He also recounted how he received news of the Grammy nomination while in Dubai, days before his birthday. “I was in the car, actually, checking a car, and then my phone rang. They were like, ‘Oh yeah, another nomination.’ I was like, wow. Thank God,” he said.
Released in April 2025 as the 17th track on 5IVE, With You has since become one of Davido’s most successful recent records, surpassing 100 million streams on Spotify, despite Nigeria not recording a win at the 2026 Grammy Awards.
Looking ahead, Davido said he is focused on touring and releasing new music. He is also scheduled to perform at Coachella 2026 as the only Nigerian artist on the festival lineup, taking the stage on April 11 and April 18 in Indio, California.
The Grammy experience, while bittersweet, underscores Davido’s continued prominence in global music and his growing influence as a leading ambassador of Afrobeats on the world stage.